come with me
by hecayte
Summary: so tell me now; how does it hurt to love the devil? is it because he hurts you with his love? or is it because he loves you so much it hurts? [anakin/padmé au, movie canon divergence during the end of revenge of the sith]
1. Prologue

_-prologue-_

The roar of her ship's engine fills her ears, but in her mind, there is nothing but silence. C-3PO's joints whir quietly in their sockets, a light flashes on her dashboard, but her head is in her hands, palms pressed to her eyes in distress.

 _"Padmé…Anakin has turned to the Dark Side."_

Wrong.

 _"Palpatine is the Sith lord we've been looking for."_

Wrong again.

 _"After the death of Count Dooku, Anakin became his new apprentice."_

Still wrong.

It was all wrong, a figment of her imagination, some twisted side effect of this pregnancy wreaking havoc on her mind. Her imagination was wrong, Obi-Wan was wrong, the stupid security holograms were wrong—Anakin couldn't have turned to the Dark Side. Not her Anakin. Not her Ani, not the sweet blue-eyed boy she found on Tattooine a thousand lifetimes ago. The Sith's apprentice couldn't be him.

The view through the windows becomes a deep, fiery red as the Mustafar lava shoots into the air. A tower looms above her, coal black against a backdrop of molten rock. A small, cloaked figure peeks out from behind the tower and starts running towards her ship.

The doors to her ship open and she runs into his arms. They are warm, solid—they feel like Anakin's arms. He holds her there for a long time, her chin nestled in the curve of his collarbone like it always does. Her breathing is ragged and shallow, heart beating fast against Anakin's ribs.

"I saw your ship," he murmurs, stroking the braids in her hair. His chin rests lightly on her forehead and one hand moves to the curve of her waist and hugs her tighter. "Why did you come? Why aren't you in Coruscant?"

"I—I…" her voice trembles and she shudders against Anakin's body despite the burning heat. "I was so _worried_ about you, Ani."

Anakin exhales slightly, half laughing, half sighing. "I'm in no danger, Padmé." He closes his eyes and lets his waves of hair fall over her face.

She lifts her head to meet his eyes. The light from the lava makes his eyes look dark red and yellow, not the same blue ones she knows. "O-Obi-Wan…he told me terrible things, Anakin."

His eyes harden and he sets his hands on her shoulders, arm's length away. "What has he told you?"

"He—"

"No," he whispers, "don't tell me." He cups her face in his hands, bony fingers and calluses against her jawline. "He's trying to turn you against me, Padmé. Don't let him."

"Anakin, he wants to help us. He—he knows. About the baby."

"He knows?"

She nods. "Anakin…I don't care about any of this. I don't care about politics, or the Emperor. I care about you and me. Us."

"I know." His voice is soft and husky, the same voice that teased her in the fields on Naboo, the one that said, 'I do' a million years ago.

"You don't have to do this," she whispered, bringing one hand to his face and running it down the hollow of his cheek. "I don't want any of this—Anakin, all I want…all I want is your love."

"But love won't save you, Padmé," he insists, pulling away from her. "Don't you see? The Light Side cannot protect you from death, but the Dark Side can. I can't love you or protect you when I am a Jedi, and I'm tired of that, Padmé. I'm tired of being helpless, of losing the people I care about. I won't lose you. Not like I lost my mother. You, Padmé…you're all I have left. This," he gestures around him, to the lava and rock, "it's all for you. To protect you."

"I don't need you to protect me," she says. "Anakin, all I need is you. I won't die, Ani, I promise—just come away with me and I'll _show_ you. Leave it all behind before it's too late. Come back to Naboo with me and help me raise our child, Anakin, it's the only way."

"No," he says softly, "it's not."

"What do you mean?"

"The Empire is a good place, Padmé. I can love you here, not in the Republic. I can love you; I can protect you. Don't you remember the fields in Naboo so long ago? Don't you remember what we talked about? I…I have created that world here. The people will never suffer again. Not while I am in power." His eyes gleam in the light as they look down upon her.

She looks at him helplessly, unable to process what she hears. "You're not the same anymore, Ani."

"But I _am_ ," he says. He brings his hand to caress her face. "I am, Padmé. I still love you. I still want you to be safe. What has changed?"

"Obi-Wan…he said you killed people. Innocents. Younglings, Anakin. That's not what you would do."

"They weren't innocents, Padmé," Anakin insists gently, "they had to be stopped. And I never killed younglings. These are Obi-Wan's _lies_ to you, can't you see? He's lying. He doesn't care about us, just his precious Republic. Don't you trust me?"

A roar of lava.

"Don't you?"

"Anakin..."

He studies her face with cold eyes. "You don't." He paces, agitated, fiddling with the hilt of his lightsaber. "Do you love me?"

"Of course I do!"

"So come with me," he pleads, hungry light in his eyes. "Join me. I can save you, I can make you the queen of the galaxy; I can make you immortal, Padmé. Our child will never have to suffer and neither will you. I'm done with being in pain." He brushes a strand of hair away from her face. "If you love me, join me."

She bites her lip and turns away from him. "Ani..."

"You love me, don't you, Padmé?" His voice is so soft, so gentle, so familiar. The way he tilts her chin up with the tips of his fingers brings back waves of nostalgia for fields and marble courtyards. "I can give you everything. You and I...we could do great things."

Her lips part, but no sound comes from them. "I..."

 _He's not the same._

 _Do what is best for the greater good, Padmé._

 _You are in love with a murderer, a Sith lord._

"Please," Anakin whispers, his face mere centimeters away from hers, his nose brushing against hers. "I don't care about anything else. I don't care about the Emperor, or the Empire. You're all I have left to care about, Padmé. Come with me." He holds her cold hands in his warm ones, the metal of his mechanical hand clinking as he presses her hand to his chest.

 _I love him._

 _But I can't do this._

 _But I love him._

She looks behind her, at her ship, at her people, at her loyalties. _I am abandoning all this_.

"Come with me, Padmé."

Her mind is screaming, crying for her to say no, to run back onto her ship and go back to Coruscant. Because she has a duty to the people, and she knows she can't abandon millions because of her own selfish desires. She cannot desert those who have given so much to her, to those who she has served for eighteen years. She cannot leave an entire galaxy for one person.

"Okay."

 _fin._

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 **[edited once as of 12/30/15]**

 **reviews are adored and cherished for an eternity of lifetimes.**


	2. A Shift in Power

What did the universe look like when it started its existence? Was the emptiness suddenly consumed with an illuminating light, one that ripped up the darkness and replaced it with wholesomeness? Did the newly created stars sing the praises of a god who created them with a flick of his hand?

No.

She knows, because the universe suddenly came into existence in a fraction of a second, in the tiniest space of time that she let go of her duty and responsibility.

Anakin exhales, the world is good again, and a smile spreads over his face as he leans down and presses his lips to hers, capturing her mouth in a kiss that leaves a bittersweet taste on her tongue. "Yes," he breathes softly. "You're safe now, Padmé. Safe with me."

A wave of nausea hits her and she crumples against his chest, the tears flowing freely now. "Anakin," she gasps, "what have I done? What have _you_ done?"

"Shh," he murmurs, stroking her hair. "You did the right thing. It's okay. You're safe. Our child is safe." He smells of smoke and leather and sweat but underneath it all is his own scent, soft and comforting like a warm breeze, so _Anakin_ in its essence.

"Come," he says softly, taking her hand in his.

"What about my ship? And C-3PO? And Naboo and—"

"Shh," he soothes, gently placing one finger on her lips. "We'll take care of that soon, okay? It'll all be over soon, Padmé, trust me."

A plume of lava shoots through the air beside them. She follows him, one hand clutching her swollen belly. "Where are we going?"

He stops and looks at her. His eyes are muddy golden-red, not the pure blue ones of the man she married. The scar slashing through his right eye seems to glow from the lava, and he smiles, one corner of his lips twitching upward like it always does.

"Home," he answers simply.

…

"Your room, milady." A teasing trace of the old Anakin creeps into his voice as he leads her into their bedroom. It's spacious, comfortable, and has floor-to-ceiling windows allowing her to see her husband's fiery empire. Black robes fill the closet, and she concludes that this must be where Anakin sleeps.

A droid walks in clumsily and addresses Anakin. "The Emperor wishes to see you, Lord Vader," it says robotically. "Will the lady have anything?"

Anakin frowns. "Tell him I'll be along shortly." He turns to Padmé. "I don't want to leave you here by yourself," he whispers. "What about the baby?"

"I'll be fine, Anakin," she says, although the strain in her voice weakens her lie. "Just go." Maybe it's the hormones or maybe it's the baby herself, but she can't think straight and all she wants to do is lie down and wait for the world to calm down.

He kisses her gently on the forehead. "I won't be gone long," he promises. The black of his cloak billows out from behind him as he strides out the door.

 _Hurry back, Anakin._

...

"Master." He kneels at the feet of the Emperor, head bowed. The lava light pools in his golden brown hair, almost like he's being set on fire. "You sent for me?"

"Yes," the Emperor rasps slowly. His hood covers the wrinkled old face and yellow pupils. "Yes," he repeats lazily, rising from his throne to stand by Anakin. "The girl, your wife…Padmé, is it?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Mm." He begins to pace, Anakin's eyes trained on his every move. "And you love this Padmé very much, Lord Vader?"

"Yes, my lord. I would lay all the galaxies at her feet if it made her happy," he says passionately. "I would do anything to protect her."

"Anything, you say?" Palpatine chuckles. "Be careful with that word, Anakin. It's quite strong." He pauses for a moment. "But I digress. Your wife, she is here on this planet."

"Yes, my lord. You will keep her safe and alive, I presume?"

"Oh yes, Lord Vader, fear not," Palpatine says smoothly. "Your wife will live." He paces some more, but Anakin stays firmly planted where he is, his fingers twitching towards his lightsaber. "Walk with me, Anakin." His limbs break free of their stiffness, and he forces his joints to move into a march beside the Emperor.

"Anakin," the Emperor says. "I have watched you grow from a young boy into one of the most powerful Sith I have ever seen before. Your powers have increased hundredfold, my young apprentice."

"Thank you, my lord. I am honored to have you as my master, to complete my training."

The Emperor waves his hand lazily. "You have little left to learn, Lord Vader," he praises. "But," he says, "nobody is without flaw."

Anakin bristles. "I understand, my lord."

The Emperor's walking slows. "You are becoming more and more powerful with every passing second," he says softly. He looks at Anakin. "Lord Vader, to what extent does your loyalty to me reach?"

"I would lay down my life for you, my Master," Anakin says sincerely. "You have kept Padmé alive, and I owe you my life. _She_ is my life. Nothing in all the galaxies could possibly sway my love for her, not even the Force itself."

"Hmm." The Emperor surveys Anakin, the bright yellow pupils almost glowing from beneath the shadows of his hood. "Anakin, I must ask you to do something."

"Anything, my master."

"There is an army on the planet Chryia," the Emperor says. "The people have been neutral so far, but I can sense Separatist feelings from them. Go to Chryia, Lord Vader, and bring me a new army."

"But what about Padmé, my lord? I will not leave her."

"This is not a choice, Lord Vader," the Emperor says sharply. "You must depart immediately."

"I will not go," Anakin says stubbornly. "I won't leave Padmé. I can't risk losing her to something outside of my control. I will not let her die like my mother."

"I knew you would be like this," Palpatine growls, fingers twitching. "Stubborn, selfish, _blinded by love—_ "

He barely has time to parry Anakin's sudden swipe at him with his lightsaber. "I will never leave her alone," Anakin snarls, "not as long as I can help it." Palpatine slashes at Anakin, and he blocks it, a shower of sparks bursting from the collision of the lightsabers.

A bolt of lighting erupts from Palpatine's wrinkled palm straight towards Anakin, but he deflects it with his lightsaber and directs it into the glass surrounding the throne room, where it shatters and dissipates into the air. "You will not take Padmé from me!" Anakin yells, parrying Palpatine's next strike. "You will not take my strength from me, old man. It is I who holds the power now."

"Is that so?" Palpatine snarls, aiming for Anakin's neck. "We shall see about _that!_ " A crackle of Force lightning hits Anakin's mechanized arm, rendering his forearm useless and numb.

He yells in pain, but doesn't even miss a beat in his seamless fight sequence. His anger only fuels his determination to win as he slashes mercilessly at the Emperor, finding weak spots: his legs, his veiny arms, the spot of neck under his jaw exposed by his falling hood.

He's gaining now; the old man is falling, Anakin notes with a savage delight. In one fell swoop, Anakin severs the Emperor's wrists and catches his lightsaber in his free hand, forming a cross between the two with the Emperor's neck between them. Palpatine gasps, the breath rattling in his lungs.

"Don't kill me!" the Emperor wheezes.

Anakin smirks. "You are a coward, _Palpatine_. You are weak and foolish. You thought that I would not be able to tell that you are plotting to get me away from my wife? So you could kill her and take my powers when I came back? I am not a fool like you."

"Anakin, don't kill me," he begs.

Anakin laughs, a deranged, maniacal sound. "You are not fit to rule the galaxy," he says coldly.

The lightsabers move past each other with a quick _swoosh_ , and Anakin stands, supremely satisfied with his work.

"But I am."

 _to be continued._

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 **[review replies]**

 **Ilja: thank you so much!**

 **alpha wolfstar: awww i love you. we're officially 40% of the way done with this story! expect two to three more updates!**

 **nightrxy: xdjfkljhask this is so nice of you, thank you so much omg**

 **Guest: thank you! padmé is, for me, a more difficult character to write than, say, anakin, for some reason or another. so i'm glad you liked her point of view!**

 **carter: ? ahh i love YOU so much, you're so sweet, this is such a nice review aww you're the cutest omg i love you**

 **[a/n]**

 **everyone's favorite angsty sith son saves his wife and kills the evil emperor, and now they can live on mustafar with their kids in relative peace and happiness...right?**

 **reviews are read more eagerly than sith jar jar theories**


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